#Dear Merlin...

[ask-elland-n-will]

*a small little grey owl with white flecks in her wings arrives with a small silver paper wrapped parcel. She lands, allowing Elland to retrieve the parcel and the parchment before flying off back to her owner. Inside the parcel is the tinkling of a dozen vials of freshly brewed wiggenweld, each sealed with green wax with a heart imprint over the corks. The parchment has no signature but is that’s of a young witches swirly scrawl*

Hello Elland, I hope this owl finds you well. And I do hope you won’t send William to identify my owl as I am a Slytherin student but wish to remain secret for now. Despite being cunning and ambitious I do have a shy streak and can’t find it in myself to tell you in person that I admire you. I’ve tried to flirt here and there but maybe I’m too subtle. Hufflepuffs specifically seem to have flirting go right over their adorable heads.

But I digress. While I’m still too shy to outright tell you in person I will continue to drop my subtle hints in hopes you’ll catch on. In the mean time I do enjoy getting to know you and practicing dueling with you when we get the chance and hope you enjoy my small gift.

My dear secret Slytherin,

I can assure you I will not Go telling Will to get you caught. Your adoration flatters me Though I don't know who you might be.

I'm told I cannot separate If asked to dinner or a date From simple walk and friendly chat. It's something I'll get better at!

If you're a friend, then please fret not. I'm sure I'll come across your yacht. Do not be shy but take your time: Confessing is a stressful climb.

I wish not push, I wish not hurt. Please, understand, I'm not a flirt: I say things straight, my word is clear, Just like the things I like to hear.

With little hearts on corks engraved, I'll keep the potions stashed and saved. I thank you dearly even if My heart has sailed the other skiff.

— Elland de Strontium 🌙

[estel-and-agape]

Update: she- UNPROMPTED- opened up YouTube and showed me a video with “merthur” in the title. I asked her if she knew what that meant and she looked me dead in the eye and said “They’re homosexuals.”

[myoonmii]

Someone on twt said you can see how red Merlin’s eyes are and that he’s probably been crying all night.

And I’m thinking how he obviously never left Arthur’s side after the magic reveal, so he probably would’ve been a few feet away and Arthur definitely would’ve heard him sobbing quietly through the night but he felt too betrayed to even look at him, let alone comfort him.

[saladscream]

Ah yes, those new year's resolutions... 🙄

[yellowyani]

HOGAN AFK JOURNEY IM GONNA THROW UP YOU CANT JUST SAY THAT.

[justaz]

merlin’s secret being a visual thing. when he is around arthur or gwen or leon or morgana or [insert whatever character here] merlin seems pale and thin, almost like a ghost or an apparition. when the sun lands on him he reflects it like a corpse, he eyes seem dark and dull. he has this ethereal beauty to him, this otherworldly visage that leads many to believe he is of fae blood. he just doesn’t seem to be 100% human. but when he is ONLY with lancelot or gaius (cough or gwaine bc gwaine DEFINITELY knew) merlin is heartachingly human. merlin shines in the sunlight, colors are brighter and more vibrant around him, and his smiles are wide and his laughs are boisterous. he takes on color and leaves everyone wanting to know him. but when other join in or interact with the two, merlin shifts before their eyes so quickly and suddenly that they aren’t sure whether or not what they saw was a trick of the light. the idea still leaves them wanting more and wanting to see the merlin who is just so full of life but that merlin only appears for a small select group of people. merlin who has a guard so high that it has an effect of other’s perception of him.

[kairennart]

three mimir

for @merlinrarepairfest

[adhd-merlin]

though he be but little,

[kiwi-sarenka]

picnic

[confusedkittensposts]

Something something Castiel something something Merlin something something Dog

[atdawn]

All I’ve ever wanted is to be your queen. I still want to be your queen. I don't want to see you dead, Guinevere...but I don't want to see you. I cannot look on you every day.

[windmaedchen-oceanhorn]

argh, I still have so much in my head!

End Game Ideas

I am stuck on the craziness of endgame possibility. We have what, 7 or 9 sword bearers or something? So let's say we get them all and then it's time for the great showdown. Obviously Ygdris/Great Will has to return and an epic battle takes place before Merlin finally emerges victorious.

So, since Erin's been reborn at this current point in time... it's her job to actually get Ygdris out of his prison. The Adamant Syndicate (AS) is just the most recent of cults with that goal, but being entirely human they couldn't make much progress throughout the centuries. But just as much Merlin is the key for the light to succeed in the end... Erin is the key for the darkness to spread.

I want to utilize the Silencing Spell for that. Imagine it's significance. Mages rely purely on magic to fight and defend. If you are able to remove a mages ability to call upon magic, then thats a different caliber of breach. Silencing a mage is pretty much their death sentence. And it is no coincidence that this spell is not only forbidden, but also incredibly hard to master. What control over magic do you need to withhold it from someone else?!

We know Merlin uses it so some extend, but I have the feeling it's the players choice to abuse it. Merlin would not willingly use it as freely as players may do. Just as Hammie didn't want Merlin to use that gravecalling magic, she probably doesn't appreciate the Silencing spells either and tolerates them only in emergency battles.

And who uses it, too? Cyran. I am cheekily making him be able to learn it not only by studying Merlin's magic, but also through the book of Dark Magic given to him by Erin. It's the most difficult and dangerous in it. We have used Cyran in game a lot and he's silencing Merlin's here and there but... in canon: he will be able to do it only once. xD It's too important a spell.

So in the timeframe that Erin hunts down her master, when she realizes Cyran is able to silence others... the clock starts ticking.

Because here's what happened: The First Divine War was one big stalemate. In the end, Dura felt she had no choice. She sacrificed herself to become a giant magic circle, silencing Ygdris. She is laying all over Esperia and it is completely unknown to anyone what exactly she did. The Celestials consider Ygdris imprisoned back in the Underworld, where the Hypogeans were pushed back into after Ygdris was silenced. Ygdris actually remained in Esperia, however, scattered - unable to move or do anything. And this has been the case for two millennia now. That Ygdris can show himself to the AS in the dark, purple gooey form is due to their sacrifices usually and him being able to ever so slightly drip through grips of the Silencing spell. He is a powerful being, after all.

Cyran's ambition is vital for all this. He enables Erin to study the Silencing spell again and figure out how to break it. She just needs to be able to discern Dura's magic circle now, which is... immensely difficult due to it's size. You're not just looking for the needle in a haystack in order to break it, but you are also trying to see the forest for all the trees in it.

The hint comes from Dura herself to Erin. Remember how she gave her the necklace that hid her Hypogean aura? On the backside is written: When darkness swallowed this light - come home to me. Erin knew of the inscription forever, but also only was reminded of it because she saw the broken and useless necklace again in Cyran's possession (he kept it after Erin's rebirth, it's magically and historically too interesting to be cast away). And where is "home to me"? 

In the heavens, so to speak. Where the Celestials have their realm and base. The place where they erected Dura's grave/memorial. A place inaccessible normally to anyone. But not Erin. Even without the necklace, Erin can actually use the Divine Light (thanks to Dura's and Merlin's guidance (even if she's really worse than the newest of novices)). She covers herself in a thin layer of it, in order to enter the sacred realm of the Celestials.

That's such an epic visit. xD First Erin sets free the Hypogeans still imprisoned there (as well as possibly Gavus, Liberta and Lucilla for the sake of her brother). Of course the celestials are now alarmed and take up the pursuit. Erin breaches deep into the heart of this realm, to visit Dura's grave. She snatches Dura's crown and escapes. There is not a single Celestial now that's still in slumber. They know what's going to happen and panic. All of Esperia is now on high alert.

There are a few more days of grace period, because Erin is NOT Ygdris and has to recover a little. The AS just tries to divert attention as much as possible, but they secretly make their final moves to help Erin break the spell. And so, wearing Dura's crown, Erin ascends to the skies above Esperia, able to discern Dura's spell and then gives her life to break it. Ygdris can finally ooze out from wherever he is, and trust me, he is EVERYWHERE, and the world is plunged into darkness, and utilizing Erin's body and soul he manifests one more time, effectively eradicating her existence.

The sky is a dark red/purple hue and Esperia is in for a hard time.

After this, I suppose, things will settle just a little, so to allow Merlin and the Celestials to plan their approach. Overall, Ygdris is not around for long. Merlin will take him down, one way or another. But, not after a nice epic battle against Cyran. These two must fight. The first thing Cyran does is kill Chippy and Hammie. That's how he makes himself known to Merlin before stepping out of the darkness. Oh, the spite being spoken. Merlin trying to appease... but... no. I imagine that at first Merlin WILL loose. And for a very short moment, Cyran is victorious. Unfortunately for Cyran, Merlin is not just a human. Something Cyran never managed to believe. And so Merlin is able to return (not unlike after his meeting with the God of Death), reborn, like Erin. Reborn as that which he is (including all his memories). A manifestation of magic, or the will and soul of Esperia, a different kind of light compared to Dura's Divinity. And so Cyran dies. And upon his death, Merlin admits to Cyran that in all his time on Esperia, he has never encountered a human mage as strong and skilled as Cyran (and Esperia (Merlin) will forever remember his face).

(And then maybe we get the cheesy ending, please. Snake Cyran King and his Queen forever.)

OR, we just see the darkness disappear and both light and dark return to a new equilibrium, with Merlin maybe disintegrating until he/she/they are needed again in another cycle of this eternal fight between light and dark. The End. Bye.

*drops mic*

[mythandmagic]

please Please PLEASE everyone go read Like Every Tree Stands on Its Own by @mightybog it is phenomenal and has deliciously altered my brain chemistry. AND there's a sequel in the works which is sure to be just as marvelous and heartwrenching and beautiful as the first.

Seriously, I have been rotating this story for days, even made some picrews about it (courtesy of ElenaA's Kiss Crew, beloved).

Anyway, please go read and kudos and comment and show her some love because she deserves it.

[saladscream]

Dear Diary Series

(don't mind me, I'm just archiving shit on my Tumblr. Sorry for the fanart dump)

[justaz]

mithian and elena watching arthur and gwen interact as an engaged couple, right before their wedding: hmm

merlin sneaking up behind them and watching what theyre staring at: whatcha doin?

mithian and elena tug merlin in between them: look!

merlin: i’m looking. what am i looking at?

elena: the way he looks at her!

merlin: with love and adoration?

mithian: like a dear friend. you know, he looked at me like that when we were betrothed

elena: he looked at me like that when we were courting too!

merlin: yeah….because he liked the both of you?

mithian hums her agreement: yes. do you know why we broke it off?

elena: and why we didn’t work out?

merlin: uh because-

elena: because he looked at us like dear friends

mithian: and he looked at you like you were his whole world

[dawnstudies]

BBC Merlin headcanon: Arthur just loves guns. Like the moment Merlin introduces him to pistols and shotguns, Arthur motherfucking Pendragon is sold. He'd be there going out practicing every day, becoming a police man after Merlin forged him some documents, and the funny part? Merlin himself is absolutely terrified of it all. After the destruction he'd seen them do, he hates all sorts of new weapons. But of course he supports his husband in his dreams and soon comes to terms with the fact that there's like five guns in their house, all in Arthur's collection of weapons. And he'd have grenades and all sorts of relics that'd be worth millions of dollars but he loves them because when he thinks of how easy it would've been to win with them back in their times, there's a rush of adrenaline that comes with the thought.

So, yea. Modern Age Arthur loves guns and becomes a policeman. And Merlin is worried (as always)